Animals and electricity don’t mix very well. And unfortunately, a number of local creatures are learning this lesson the hard way. One particular species is the unswerving target of New York assemblyman Jose Peralta, who hopes to thwart the corrupt behavior of seemingly innocuous pigeons. Citing the tarnishing effect of their copious waste on subway stations, Peralta has championed a new technology that gives electric shocks to birds that land above NYC subways. The system, which already exists on the No. 7 line, employs electrified strips that send non-lethal electric shocks through perches over elevated train stations. The hope is that an absence of birds will equal an absence of bird feces, which Peralta sees as a sinister threat to city residents, particularly children. “People have been hit by the feces as they're walking,” notes Peralta. “They’ve been afraid to touch the feces because they were afraid that it may be hazardous to their health.” So, in addition to cleaning up some stations, Peralta has virtually locked in the fecal-phobic demographic for his next campaign.